to think it is just not necessary to have a dining table anymore?

[LDNmummy]

Traditionally it has always been the look of a good home to have a dining table, preferably with its own area/ room in a house for family gatherings.

But, with modern life as it is, I just don't think it is necessary to have one anymore, unless of course you genuinely use it at least once a week. But do most families anymore?

I don't know many families who still go through the process of sitting around the dining table every weekend let alone every day, possibly for the fact that it is a little extra effort people are not as formal about anymore and sitting together doesn't have to be around a table but even just in the living room watching the telly together IYSWIM.

Plus, houses are not always big enough to accomodate a large family sized table and some may just feel it isnt worth the hassle to cram one in.

I also think this about the large cabinets that traditionally housed all a households fine dining wear that would come out on special occasions.

Aren't these bulky pieces of furniture that take up lots of space and are rarely used outdated now except with older people?

My MIL has a six seater table in the living room that could easily fit eight diners but is used properly about once a year. Half the reason for that is that it is too big and has to be crammed against a wall so isnt convenient to sit around daily or even weekly anyway. She also has a very large display cabinet full of her best dining wear wich is only used when special guests such as family travelling from abroad are visiting, which is rarely.

She is about 60 and in her eyes these two items of furniture are essential to beautify a home as well as for practical reasons, which IMO is questionable. My DM and all the older women in my family feel the same way.

But isnt this just all outdated and unecessary faff a house can do without in a time when people are no longer as formal when it comes to situations such as dining?

If we didn't have room for a dining table I'd get rid of the sofa.
Home offices are luxuries, dining tables are essential.

They absolutely don't have to be enormous expensive formal arrangements though. My table does nothing to beautify my house, I simply couldn't do without it.

TimeWasting a home office is definitely a necessity in my home if I ever want DH to spend time with our child when she arrives in October.

He can be at work till 10pm many evenings so at least this way we have him here in some way shape or form.

When we lived in our 1 bed flat we had a long low coffee table that doubled as a dining table Japanese style.

But now I couldn't live without our kitchen table. It's the physical incarnation of the heart of our family. We've laughed, cried, celebrated and mourned around it. It was given to us by a dear friend. I even went into labour over it.

Btw, I've not read the whole thread but do you mean kitchen table or full on, formal dining table? In a formal dining room used only for the purpose of formal dining?? If yes, I can and do totally do without this.

I'd like to get rid of our dining table and chairs and turn the dining room into a study. We have a big kitchen table to eat around. DH seems wedded to the dining table though :(

Kitchen Table to eat if just us 4

Usually use the dining room though as we usually have several extras eating here.

Food in front of TV only if TV unmissable, hardly ever due to the wonder of Sky +.

We literally didn't have room for a separate office, for the first time ever, when we moved 2 years ago, but we found ways around it. The dining room space was large enough for bookcases, and as our desktop PC had died, we simply put the printer on the bookcase and use our laptops.
Now we've moved again and don't have a separate dining room, the table is in the large kitchen, so the officey stuff is in our bedroom, with laptops in the front room. It isn't ideal, I really miss having an office, but we don't have room.

One of the great things about a dining table is it's versatility, for many people it is the home office.

I could easily do without my dining room but not without a table...

We are lucky in that we have a dining room and a small table in the kitchen which is where we eat most of the time... tonight we are eating in the garden as it's so nice.

We try to all eat dinner round the table as a family 3 or 4 nights a week, on the others the children tend to eat first at the table, but i sit down with them, dh and i then eat our dinner later, admittedly in the front room.

Occasionally we will get a pizza and watch a film and all eat in the lounge but thats a big treat.

I don't know anyone who doesn't have a table (in some room) to eat at....

"Home offices are luxuries, dining tables are essential."

That kind of depends really, say if you work from home for example. You might find it a little bit hard to survive with a dining table rather than a home office.

We eat at the kitchen table because it's easier, nothing to do with "looks" . Also it's important to have a conversation with the TV off. And we always keep food out of the living room so there are no crumbs/spillages on the carpet etc. Slumping in front of the TV eating microwaved ready meals doesnt do anypne any good I think, but your house your rules ...

My DH was dragged brought up in a house where they ate shit food lovely meals on their laps.

Totally grim and uncivilised, IMO.

Depends. If you have a kitchen table your family can sit around, then no of course you don't need one.

But it annoys me intensely that even just a kitchen table is a squish in this house, because it limits so much, having guests round, being comfortable playing boardgames, doing crafts with my DD, sorting out paperwork. As well as just having time out to eat ordinary family meals and chat a bit.

We still bothered to squish one in because not having a table would be a pain in the bum.

Well you married the guy Indigo so surely he isnt all that 'dragged' up and 'uncivilised', or is he?

Or did you do a 'My Fair Lady' thing with him and turn it all around

I know what you mean. I bought a small table that folds out from one that can take 4 at a push to one that can take 6 with ease. I think it's important to have a family meal around a table, and DS uses it for craft and will homework etc. But people differ, and a lot of modern houses and flats simply don't have the space.

It's a bit of a middle class totem, the family meal around the table. Toxic Childhood bangs on about it and now and then the Daily Mail will do a thunder. I like it because DH works long hours and it just is nice, having a weekly big event type meal. But I do feed the tiddler at it, too, most of the time.

A huge table in a small space and a bloody great dresser - no thanks. I can think of more practical uses.

I am at mine now with a coffee watching the kids in the garden. Couldn;t be without a big table!

I have no concerns about informality. We have on occasion all eaten our dinner on a giant bean bag in DS's bedroom while watching a film on the computer. But, as others have said, I would rather get rid of my sofa than the table. We eat almost all of our meals at the table, plus using it for art stuff, games and so on.

The only thing the sofa is really used for is for the dogs to sit on, and sometimes my dad.

Also as others have said, we live in a small house and the table is in the kitchen, but we have one that has a top that folds in half, so we can get 4 around it or 8 if we fold it out.

I can't imagine our house without a dining room table. Breakfast and dinner every day gets eaten there. Dinner definitely all together, breakfast is a stream of people at different times, with DH and I trying to eat at the same time. HW is done there. DC do have desks in their room but prefer to be sociable and do it where someone can answer their questions! Dining room is a sort of through room to the kitchen so it's very sociable. Along with some others, friends come and have a cup of tea and chat, DC's friends sit while waiting for DC to get ready (chance to gently interrogate ask them about what's going on), DH does some of his work computer stuff there rather than in the study.

Main gripe is that stuff gets dumped on it so it has to be cleared for every meal. That's a bit of a pain, but I'd rather that than not use it at all.

Meals are never eaten in the sitting-room or off laps. In fact, all food is eaten in the dining-room apart from DD rushing to get to school sometimes eats toast standing up.

How bizarre. People I know with the nicest teens put the family success down to sitting around a table and talking every day....

I was brought up in a house where we ate around the table every evening .....

..... but we ate frozen food and watched tv at the same time

No wonder I'm so confused about my socio-economic grouping.

nb: the food was cooked. We didn't nibble on it in a frozen lump.

Very very rarely will i allow us to eat watching the TV. What is the world coming to. The table is the place to all get together and chat about the day. X